annual leave and mat leave - can they do this??? :-(

girls, I had a meeting with my manager today to work out mat leave dates etc.. As mentioned in my other post, my company wants all docs (mb10, cert of confinement, details of paid or unpaid leave if any etc) 12 weeks before I intend to go on mat leave. It's very early (it's normally 4 weeks before, not 12!) but because HR is in Hungary and they're apparently v. slow in processing docs (they're topping up my payments) I've been told even by other women in my workplace to send it the docs as soon as i can. So back to the original point, i had a meeting with manager to work out when I'm starting mat leave etc and when it came to counting the days holiday i have left for 2009, he said that i'm not allowed to carry them over into 2010 and I have to use them up by 2009, which means I'll have to take them BEFORE i go on mat leave! Those days are so precious for me and they're going to be better spent with the baby than alone at home pregnant waiting for something to happen! I know it's my company's policy that the vacation days need to be taken in the current year but when it comes to maternity leave extending onto the new year and still having annual leave left to take, what does the legislation say? Can my company force me to take them before the mat leave?

This is all citizens information says You are entitled to leave for any public holidays that occur during your maternity leave (including additional maternity leave). The right of employees to leave for public holidays is set down in Section 21 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. Time spent on maternity leave (including additional maternity leave) is treated as though you have been in employment, and this time can be used to accumulate annual leave and public holiday entitlement## My employer has a similar policy but they don't apply it if you are on maternity leave, you can carry over the holidays. Try to push for this again, they might change their minds? Do you know anyone else who went on maternity leave in your workplace, maybe they had a different experience and you boss is just sticking too rigidly to he rules.

I forgot to mention, I have about 4 weeks vacation left to take. Those 4 weeks would be so precious to spend with my baby! hi neov, I'm meeting my manager again on monday to finalise details and i have to inform him by then how many weeks unpaid (if any) i'm taking. The rest of the country gets up to 4 weeks to decide this before they go back to work, and I have to do it 12 weeks before I even go on mat leave! How am I supposed to know?? I will try and push it on monday to see if they'll let me use my vacation at the end of my mat leave or even in between paid and unpaid leave (btw, can this be done??) as opposed to having to take it before. I'm so disappointed with my company! So much for all the praises of flexibility, best company to work for awards and all that!

'fraid empoyers have the right to tell employees when to take hols. sorry pet. To be honest, sounds like you're getting loads of leave anyway. That is the main thing. And who knows - maybe you'll be glad of a break by wk 36 Remember though - they are not allowed to treat you less favourably than they would normally!

Hi woodstock Sorry to hear your getting hassle from your workplace over this. Now I'm not completely sure but I dont think you can carry over your hols if its against company policy. As long as you get the holidays your entitled to then you dont really have a leg to stand on legally if they tell you to take them this year. But on that note I dont see any reason how they can stop you taking them at the end of your paid Mat leave as long as that will still be in 2009. Best of luck with this I hope its all sorted for you ASAP

well.. my paid mat leave would finish before xmas, so i would use some of my holidays in 2009 and about 7 days would carry into 2010 - they're kicking up a fuss over those 7 days. However, this is with me only taking 26 weeks paid leave. I was hoping on taking some (not even all!) of the 16 week unpaid leave, but at that stage, they certainly wouldn't let me carry over any of my holidays and I'd have to take them before I go on mat leave. I don't know what to do

Work told me that I had to take the holidays at the end of the unpaid. Otherwise it would be a break between the paid and unpaid and I would not be entitled to the unpaid.

Yes you have to take your unpaid after your maternity leave then you can start using the holidays you have worked up during maternity leave. Those 7 days you have left are they from now as in your holidays from this year or are they the holidays you have worked up on maternity leave? hols you accrue on maternity leave should be allowed to take after your maternity leave.As for normal annual leave employers are entitled to tell you that you cant carry them over im afraid.

Husband said that your entitled to get paid for them if your not allowed to carry them over. Not sure if this helps. [url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/] [img:1zen4og8]http://tickers.TickerFactory.com/ezt/d/1;18;96/st/20090426/dt/5/k/cf9a/preg.png[/img:1zen4og8] [/url]

i don't know girls, I told hubby when i came home last night (he's also a manager for the same company but different dept) and he said that my manager is wrong and he's breaking one of my company rules by forcing me to take holidays before I have earned them and those holidays should be taken at the end of my maternity leave, even if at that stage we'll be in 2010, as long as they're taken before the end of the first quarter. He said I should report him to HR! Also a colleague of mine said to me yesterday that I'm being discriminated against respect to other women who have fallen pregnant 'earlier' in the year as they were allowed to add their holidays at the END of their mat leave, and we should all have the same entitlements regardless of when in the year we fall PG. MayBump - my company doesn't pay holidays as far as I know, we litterally HAVE to take them. (but I'll double check with DH) It's so messy..